The Champs are Back!!!

Looks like i am posting after a really long time... This post heralds in the most exciting football a football fan could ever dream of... The UEFA Champions League is set to resume next week after a virtually unending gap... I just cant wait to catch the action... There are a host of mouth watering ties coming up next week... Undoubtedly the Chelsea-Barca 1st leg at Stamford Bridge will be the one to watch out for... Both the teams are going through what one might say a lean patch in recent times... Chelsea were humiliated 3-0 by a team grappling with relegation- Middlesborough... Barca too suffered... In fact they went through back-to-back defeats to Atletico Madrid and Valencia...

My own favourite Arsenal will take on another Spanish giant Real Madrid... Real seem to have found some sort of form of late despite a 6-1 drubbing in the Copa Del Ray against Real Zaragoza.. They are playing better as a team and are far superior( at least on paper!!) than a depleted Arsenal who have had their worst season yet with Arsene Wenger at the helm... Hope Arsenal put up a good fight at least!!! AM keeping my fingers crossed...

Another pet team of mine... AC Milan too have been drawn against tough opponents... Bundesliga Champions Bayern Munich are sure too give Milan a run for their money... Both teams rely a lot on their defences... Milan seem to have hit the peak just at the right time with massive wins of late... Bayern on the other hand have been playing consistent football, grinding out results in the Bundesliga thereby maintaining a healthy lead there...

Last year's semifinalists PSV will be playing a repeat of last year's quarters when they face off against runaway Ligue 1 leaders Lyon.... Lyon will be looking forward to taking revenge after a bitter loss through penalties last time around... Promises to be a good match...

Newcomers Rangers and Villareal go head to head in another interesting fixture... Villareal have been putting up consistent performances while Rangers form in recent times has been nothing short of woeful... But Rangers brought up the goods last time around in the group stages when required... Letz see what happens...

A young but talented Ajax side who find themselves in a lowly 5th spot in the Dutch League take on Italian mammoths Inter... Inter are expected to progress but Ajax wont be going down without putting up a good fight...

Defending Champions Liverpool will face the conquerors of Man Utd... Portuguese side Benfica cannot be taken lightly particularly if Simao Sabrosa is playing... Curiously Simao was chased by Liverpool but a deal couldnt be made... Should be an interesting affair...

Serie A leaders Juventus will have a relatively straight forward test when they face German powerhouse Werder Bremen... Juventus have been hardly troubled by any of the Serie A opposition... But in football you never know...

Thats all for now....

Keep coming back for more updates on the footballing world!!!